Clashes Intensify in Tripoli as Death Toll Reaches 12

Clashes in the northern city of Tripoli intensified Wednesday afternoon, a day after fierce battles rocked the city, claiming the lives of at least 12 people.

Meanwhile, the meetings of the leaders of the Bab al-Tabbaneh's fighting frontiers failed to reach an agreement on a ceasefire in the city, LBCI television revealed.

MTV reported that the battles have intensified in the afternoon, adding that "all indications suggest that Tripoli will witness fierce battles in the evening."

"Four people got wounded when a mortar shell fell on Tripoli's Jabal Mohsen neighborhood. One of the men is in serious condition," it said.

Al-Jadeed television detailed saying that fierce clashes are ongoing in the Hariri Project-al-Amerkan Square area in Tripoli.

"Traffic has stopped on the international highway between Tripoli and Akkar due to sniper activity," it noted.

"Gunshots were heard in the Bab al-Tabbaneh and al-Barraniyeh neighborhoods in Tripoli."

"The army has brought in more reinforcements to the Bab al-Tabbaneh area," Future TV remarked.

The state-run National News Agency reported that 12 people were killed, including two soldiers, and around 130 others wounded in the clashes that erupted over the weekend.

Earlier in the day, sporadic gunfire and sniper activity violated the cautious calm in the northern city.

Tens of homes were damaged by the fighting and families fled to safer areas.

Future TV said that the Nashabeh Mosque, which lies between Syria Street and Jabal Mohsen, went up in flames after it was hit during the clashes.

Attempts to calm things down in the city failed after two rounds of talks between al-Mustaqbal MP Mohammed Kabbara and the leaders of the fighting frontiers in Bab al-Tabbaneh failed to reach an agreement on a ceasefire.

Kabbara told LBCI: "All of Tripoli's politicians are asking the army to end the clashes, but in a fair way that doesn't aggrieve anyone."

The leaders are set to resume talks later tonight.

Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Miqati stressed that the Lebanese army has the complete jurisdictions to take the necessary measures to halt the clashes in the city and detain security violators.

He added: “I call on all leaderships and Tripoli authorities to adhere to the policy of disassociation, which was adopted when the government was in power and is being violated by internal forces after its resignation.”

“I call on all sides to follow reason and exercise restraint over the developments in Tripoli,” he continued.

He urged officials following up talks with security leaders over the situation in the city to cooperate with the army and security forces and to lift the political cover off violators.

Prime Minister-designate Tammam Salam telephoned Army chief General Jean Qahwaji, who briefed him on the security situation in Tripoli and the measures taken by the army to stop the clashes.

The army has been deployed in the area since the outbreak but has failed to halt the fighting in the town, where clashes have frequently broken out since the March 2011 beginning of the conflict in neighboring Syria.

The Arab Democratic Party pledged later in the day to remain committed to a cease fire, ordering its supporters to exercise restraint and not to respond to the fire sources.

The largely Sunni city is home to a small community of Alawites, an offshoot of Shiite Islam to which Syrian President Bashar Assad belongs.

Clashes have often pitted residents of the Sunni district of Bab el-Tebbaneh against those from the neighboring Alawite area of Jabal Mohsen.

The latest round began as the Assad regime launched an assault on the rebel stronghold of Qusayr, near the border with Lebanon.

Well we'll have to see how badly the KSA and Qatar want Lebanon destabilized ... I'm sure the US and Israel are pushing them to escalate the confrontation as leverage.

In Sidon we see Asir blocking Hezbollah burials, a blatant confrontation that can only end badly. We can now see that Lebanon is being ruthlessly destabilized as the Syria gambit of the US_NATO_GCC cabal goes sour.

Mc - you are truly living in a fantasy world. Saad and Geagea, call them what you want, have been a force of moderation. The mustaqbal have been preaching about the state and the army and how we must be putting our trust in state institutions. This message is wearing thin with many in the sunni community who see how the hizb is acting.

Mc - again you truly do not make sense. The regime in Syria sent bombs to kill lebanese and you and the hizb seem ok with that. Indeed they are fighting to save the regime that sent those oms and that killed. The hizb and aoun moved to block any serious investigation to the killing of Hassan. The victims have been m14 and they are the criminals!!!the Hizb is protecting those charged with killing Hariri and attempting to kills MP Harb. M14 have been calling for a strong state with a monopoly on arm. The Hizb has been busy building its alternate state. When the Hizb did not accept a government decision, they stormed Beirut and the jabal and killed dozens. When they wanted a government gone, they put their thugs on the street and forced a change in government.

what about the 2 year parliament shut donw by M8? not destroying lebanon here? LOL

"Both are just the well paid puppets of the KSA and their numerous trips there prove just how embedded they are in KSA plans for Lebanon."
so given the same idiotic logic it also applies to nasrallah who goes to iran and FPM.... LOL

"Both Saad and Geagea have ratcheted up the venomous rhetoric since the assasination of Wissam al-Hassan last year."
as you minimize samaha caught red handed trying to do other bombings...

you d better be quiet mc because all your arguments are empty just pure M8 propaganda... LOL

Rafeh, actually no. Would you call the prophet muhammad (saw) a takfiri as well? Or how about Allah (swt)? Have you read the quran? If yes then you should know better than to call alawis muslims when their entire beliefs are against what God says in the quran. Calling non-muslims muslims is just as bad as calling a muslim non-muslim. Islam is what exists in the quran, not what arrogant men come up with and then claim is islam.

Look, all true Lebanese stand together behind this line in the sand, this red line drawn in the blood of our martyrs: democracy will never come to Lebanon!
Now that I say it, it doesn't seem to make much sense, does it?
Bad habits are expensive. Good habits pay for themselves and then some. A friend is a gift you give yourself. Lebanon, you have a Shia majority: go out and make a friend.

Fashart. Shites are not a majority. The only reason you even made it to 35% was because of importing iraqi and other arabic and iranian shiites that were naturalized and of course with breeding like rabbits.

It is unfortunate that we still prefer to be divided than united . It's not about Christian or Muslim , no Shia no Sunni , until we realize that we must all stand as one nation and unite no matter our differences , we will always be the easiest target and playground to the rest of the world . Seriously , why are we fighting for other countries and not our own ?? Why did we allow ourselves to get dictated by other regimes and not rule our country ourselves ? We are all Hypocrites , Shia fight for the east while Sunni fight for the west (with Christians and Druze along side each) only a minority of lebs fight for a true Lebanon . One where we all love each other and we all dropped our parents' hatred towards each other . We never learn . And not until we do , will Lebanon ever be peaceful . Sadly that will never happen . And that is why our youth has left this land of hatred . We think we are better than anyone while we have nothing to show for .